This past Saturday, October 26, 2024, I had the pleasure of attending the 2nd Annual Nevada Tea Festival that took place at Casino Fandango in Carson City. The Festival website (https://www.nevadateafest.com/) states:

The Nevada Tea Festival was established in 2023 by Dr. Sally Wei, former director of the Midwest Tea Festival. It is an annual event that brings together the world's best teas and tea lovers from all over the Western U.S. for a day of enjoyment, learning, and celebration about the simple pleasure of tea in our lives.

The all-day affair featured lectures, seminars by industry professionals, tea classes, dedicated tastings, and live music. There were about two dozen exhibitors, and in addition to world class tea, there were booths dedicated to baked goods, chocolates, herbs and botanicals, tea ware, and much more. The generous venue included a Lecture Hall / Classroom and a divided Tea Lounge area for tastings and events, as well as an open exhibition area. The festival was well-attended, but not packed like the San Francisco International Tea Festival (https://www.sfitf.com/), which generally takes place the weekend after the Nevada Tea Festival—this year on November 2-3, 2024 in the San Francisco Ferry Building. At the Nevada Tea Festival, attendees have the time and space to enjoy many samples without waiting in long lines, and the chance to have real conversations with shop proprietors and business owners, students and scholars, as well as other tea enthusiasts.

One of the educational tastings was a range of Darjeeling teas, led by Deborah Raab of Tea-For- All (https://tea-for-all.com/), who guided the samplings of tea bushes originally transplanted in the late 1800s vs. their clonal versions, and first- and second-flush offerings from the same estate. While I have had the privilege of sampling Darjeeling teas from different estates, this was the first time I had the opportunity to compare originals to clones, and a single estate’s first flush to their second flush. There were subtle and interesting differences, but they were all delightful. 

Nami Thompson from Tea Cozy in Sacramento (https://www.teacozy.biz/) led a tasting of green teas from Japan that ranged from a luscious but simple sencha, to a umami-rich tencha, to a sakura (cherry blossom) green tea that paired wonderfully with the wagashi Japanese confection from Osaka-ya (https://osakaya-wagashi.com/) that it was served with.

Among the many events were a business seminar on “Growing and Foraging for Your Own Herbal Teas” by longtime tea educator Babette Donaldson (https://babettedonaldson.com/) and a workshop demonstration on “Cooking with Tea” by noted chef Shunda Huang. Pratik Rijal of the Nepal Tea Collective (https://nepalteacollective.com/) offered a lecture on “The Future of Tea,” covering such important topics as climate change, fair labor practices, sustainability, and connecting farmers to consumers. Other events included a guided tasting of herbal teas by Dipika Jain of Kiara Naturals (https://shopkiara.com/) –not to be confused with the Swiss apothecary company—and a gaiwan workshop led by the Festival organizer Dr. Sally Wei herself. 

There were many excellent teas to try, but the two most striking to me that day were the Nilgiri Frosted Noir from Herbs & Kettles (https://www.herbsandkettles.com/), a lighter black tea with hints of orange and wintergreen, and limited batch Michelia roasted Taiwanese high-mountain oolong from Jing Si Tea (https://jingsi.shop/pages/jing-si-tea). Michelia is fragrant flower related to the magnolia, and it imparts a gentle floral sweetness to this richly flavored tea.

The Festival was very family friendly. In addition to having many caffeine-free options (not to mention the scones, cakes, and other sweets), there was a Kids Corner which served as the venue for a children’s tea workshop, a poster drawing contest, and an awards ceremony that capped the day’s program. Jennifer Parron, a tea enthusiast who made the drive all the way from San Diego for the weekend, enjoyed the variety of small tea companies, as well as the informative workshops and guest speakers, saying “I appreciated the intimacy of the event and would highly recommend it to others who love tea as I do.”

Make plans to join in the festivities in October 2025 when the 3 rd Annual Nevada Tea Festival takes place. It’s just 30 minutes from both Reno and South Lake Tahoe, and makes for a great weekend escape from the Bay Area, Davis/Sacramento, or even from Southern California!